


One Skis, The Other Doesn't

by MaudeZbornak



Category: A Star is Born (2018), Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Ben Solo in That White Ski Suit, Ben Solo in a Cable Knit Sweater, Crossover, F/M, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Suicide, It's Because of That Picture, Matchmaking, Rey Has Nothing To Worry About, Romance, Romantic Comedy, Skiing, Soft Ben Solo, Vacation, skiing vacation, you know the one
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-10
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-16 17:27:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29953407
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaudeZbornak/pseuds/MaudeZbornak
Summary: Ben meets his favorite singer, Ally Maine, while on vacation with his family. A picture hits the media with rumors of "Ally moving on," which Rey sees…Inspired by a specific photograph of two certain people. I had to do it.
Relationships: Rey & Ben Solo, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 7
Kudos: 41





	1. One Ticket To Rome

**Author's Note:**

> Disclosure: I am an American. US spellings will apply.
> 
> Content notes: Since A Star Is Born backstory will be noted throughout, there will be mentions of Jack Maine's suicide. I'll note the chapters.
> 
> cw // suicide mention

Rey Walker burst, unannounced, into Rose Tico’s room and asked to borrow her European plug adapter. “I need it now,” she said, barrelling into her flatmate’s bathroom.

Rose was halfway dressed and yelped at the interruption. She zipped up her jeans. “Hel- _lo_? Boundaries? What if Armie was in here naked?”

“Armie doesn’t have anything I haven’t already seen.” Rey emerged with the adapter and a few extras. “I’m borrowing your travel shampoo.”

“Take it. There’s barely enough for half a head. Why are you taking this stuff?” Rose asked.

“I’m going to Italy.”

Rose’s cry of surprise sounded behind her, but Rey wasn’t about to pause to explain. Time was of the essence here, and every minute she spent mucking around at home meant Ben Solo was inching further away from her, possibly forever.

Rose took her turn barging where she didn’t belong. She filled the doorway of Rey's room, arms folded and demanding attention. “Say that again?”

Rey tossed clothes with haphazard abandon into a rolling suitcase, not looking at her. “I am going to Heathrow. I’m getting on a plane to Rome. I am taking a car to the Italian Alps and to Val Naboo. Where I get there I will find Ben and tell him I love him.”

“You’re insane.”

Rey looked up and nodded at the phone in Rose’s hand. “You didn’t see the group text he sent?”

“What? No, I’ve been chatting up Armie all day. Hang on.”

They kept up a long thread -- her, Rose, Ben Solo, and a few other friends. It’s where they planned meetups for drinks and movies, shared memes and basic nonsense. When Ben left a few days ago to meet his extended family in Italy to celebrate his Nana Padme’s birthday, he’d sent photo after photo. Various Solos and Skywalkers bundled in the snow, cousins learning to ski, Ben himself mastering the slopes in a white ski suit that made him look like a sexy Olympian in training.

Rey had crushed on him forever -- forever being since he arrived in London a few years ago on a postgraduate scholarship and stayed on to work. The day he moved into their building, Rey tripped on every word in the English language trying to invite him up for dinner. Luckily Rose had been there to translate.

He became part of the gang, but Rey wanted her part and his to become whole. After two years of missed opportunities and losing her nerve, it took one text and one gossip site to light the fire.

“Wow! Ben met Ally Maine?” Rose flashed his latest picture, but Rey didn’t look. She’d seen it. The image currently burned in the backs of her eyes. Ben smiling into a camera, rocking a cable knit sweater, getting cozy with one of the most famous women in the world.

Famous, glamorous, rich, successful...and unattached.

“I love her, she is amazing. That new album of hers is definitely her best so far. What are the odds Ben would meet her on vacation?” Rose was saying, coming deeper into the room. “I wonder if he can get me her autograph?”

“Check Twitter,” she told Rose. “She’s trending.”

“Yeah?” _Tap tap tap._

Rey secured her baggage and waited, watching for her best friend’s reaction. Rose laughed. Laughed!

“It’s not funny,” Rey said.

“Rey! You know this is just clickbait shite.” Rose’s words came out stuttered as she laughed. Rey failed to see the humor. She grabbed Rose’s phone and read the gossip website her friend had pulled up.

 _Ally’s New Man?_ read the headline. The article underneath reported on Ally’s presence in Italy partly to promote a series of television appearances in Rome, and to enjoy a short vacation before embarking on her next world tour. Staff at Val Naboo, the resort where Ally and Ben and his family were staying, remarked on the singer’s “instant attraction” to the tall, handsome mystery man.

Of course, public opinion would lean toward the woman. Ally Maine’s life was the stuff of Hollywood melodrama. Once a waitress aspiring to sing, he’d been discovered by the legendary Jackson Maine, and rose to fame on her own merits. They’d had a very public marriage marked by passion and addiction, fierce love and professional conflicts, until Jackson tragically took his life.

Yet Ally survived, and the world rooted for her to find happiness. They were rooting for her to hook up with the man Rey loved.

 _Not on my watch_. Rey yanked her bag off the bed and shot Rose a look she wanted to mean business. “What if it’s not shite?” she asked. What if Ben never came back, and subsequent texts to the group thread arrived from every stop on Ally’s tour?

“I’m sure there are a hundred pictures like this, Rey,” Rose told her. “Meaning that Ally can’t walk around without being recognized, and she’s probably posed with every guest in the hotel.”

“Is she ‘instantly attracted’ to everybody in the hotel, too?” Rey checked her purse. Passport, phone, chewing gum, and every credit card she owned. “They could be making love by a roaring fire in her cozy ski bungalow right now.” She hoped not, but if they were close she needed to get there and put a stop to it.

“Go, Ben.” Rose’s eyes widened at Rey and she added, “I’m kidding.”

Rey scowled. “You can apologize by driving me to the airport.”


	2. More Dom For Us

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cw // suicide reference

Ben Solo joined his grandmother on the balcony, dropping a kiss on her cheek before sitting next to her at the table laden with cloche-covered plates and coffee service. He lifted the bottle of Dom from its bucket and whistled. “You’re not planning to mix this with orange juice, are you?” he teased her.

“I thought at first they were delivering us somebody else’s breakfast, but the champagne came with this note.” Nana Padme handed him the small envelope and asked him to read it. “I left my glasses in my room.”

Ben adjusted his own glasses. “‘To Padme Skywalker, on the occasion of your birthday. May you celebrate many more with your beautiful family. Sincerely, Ally Maine.’” Ben smiled after reading it. How kind of the singer to go through the trouble of sending a gift, especially since he’d only mentioned the reason for this trip in passing. “Where is everybody?”

Padme sipped her coffee. “They wanted to get in some time on the slopes before eating. You should have gone with them.”

“Maybe I wanted to have you to myself for a little while.” Ben winked. He lifted the bottle to open it. “Why wait for them? More for us.”

The cork launched from the bottle’s neck with a loud pop and Ben hovered the rush of bubbles over two empty glasses. He toasted his beloved grandmother and clinked his glass to hers. “Maybe you and I can hit the slopes today, just the two of us.”

His grandmother laughed. For a woman of a certain age, she defied it in every way. Her expression was radiant as she looked out at the snow-covered mountain range. Ben knew this region held a special place in her heart, and only after seeing a twinge of sadness threaten that joy did he speak up.

“I know you miss him, Nana.”

“I do.” She appeared to struggle with a smile now, but she recovered and sipped more of the Dom. “Ani would have loved being here with the entire family, and family-to-be.” She was speaking of his cousin Jaina’s boyfriend, Jagged, on his first official Solo/Skywalker excursion. Ben drank deeply from his glass on hearing it, because he knew what was coming next.

“You don’t need to be out skiing with your old fossil of a grandmother, Ben.” She patted her hand. “Why didn’t you bring along a companion? That young woman you talk about, who lives next door to you.”

Rey. His too cute neighbor. Gal pal. Pilferer of his chips at the pub when she thought he wasn’t looking. He’d wanted badly to invite her, but feared overwhelming her. The introduction to the family -- this one, anyway -- usually signaled an imminent proposal. His parents and aunt and uncle were fairly liberal people, too. Jaina and Jagged had their own bedroom and nobody batted an eyelash.

Two years of knowing Rey and he hadn’t the nerve to ask her out on a proper date. One couldn’t jump from stealing chips while out with friends to jumping into bed in a foreign country, while your parents slept in the next room.

“She couldn’t get away,” he said, wanting to leave it at that.

“Christmas, then. We’ve booked a castle in Scotland, so it’s not far. No excuses, see that she gets the time off.” Padme had spoken. “Now,” she took back the card, “who is this Ally Maine?”

“You know who she is, Nana.” Ben called up his Prime Music app and put on Ally’s debut album. Padme’s eyes lit with recognition on hearing Ally sing.

“That’s right,” she said. “She has a beautiful voice.”

Indeed. Ally was Ben’s favorite singer, and by an amazing coincidence she was staying at Val Naboo for a bit of rest before her next tour. Despite having all her albums and several concert attendances, Ben hadn’t sought her out when he heard she was here. He wasn’t a star collector, and figured the woman liked her privacy.

Their meeting had unfolded like some rom-com meet cute, which he explained to his grandmother.

“Jaina, Jagged, and I were down in the game room yesterday. On the way back, we cut through one of the courtyards and this big ball of fur goes rolling past me,” he said. He cut off the music and pulled up his gallery app. “Turns out it was her hat. It blew off her head. Took a minute to register that I was actually talking to Ally Maine herself.”

She was so nice, upbeat and willing to stop for a photo. It warmed Ben to see her smile, given the trials she’d endured. It was one thing to lose a husband, but Jackson Maine was also a public figure and his death nearly broke the Internet. Every subsequent anniversary of his passing brought tributes and retweeted hotline numbers. Perhaps a good thing, in a way, but he figured it must be hard for his widow to see it.

She had looked directly into his eyes when they spoke -- small talk about skiing and how Italy was so different from States. He’d mentioned Nana’s birthday and she said to send her best regards. The Dom...that was a surprise. Definitely too much of a payback for returning a runaway hat.

“Jaina took the picture,” he said.

Padme admired the shot. “I have such a handsome grandson, and you have a nice souvenir of your trip. It’s a shame your lady friend missed meeting a celebrity.”

_Right._ Rey’s taste in music ran a touch more metal, he knew. Not a detraction for him, if only he could work past the jitters. Maybe when he got home he’d ask her to a movie, just the two of them.

Gradually the rest of the family came in to eat, and breakfast passed with lively conversation and more photos. When service arrived to clear the plates, Ben was handed another envelope.

_Ben,_

_I hope your grandmother enjoyed her birthday gift. It was my pleasure to give it. It turns out my stay here is extended a few days, and I would be honored to host your family for dinner tonight in my cottage._

_Ally_

Jaina fangirled her acceptance, causing half the table to wince. The server stood by, awaiting an RSVP.

Ben glanced at his grandmother, whose expression read _Why not?_

“Tell her we are all happy to attend,” he said, and immediately opened his group text thread. _Wait ‘til everybody hears about this!_


	3. Veloce!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cw // reference to Jack Maine's death

Rey deplaned in Rome with no knowledge of the Italian language, no room reserved at Val Naboo, and no clue how to get there. She’d never done anything this impulsive in her life, and after standing by a Lavazza kiosk for two minutes she wondered if she ought to turn back to the gate and see about buying a ticket home.

Then, three little words spurred her on to customs. _Ally Maine Solo_. The singer was probably a sweet person, and in an alternate universe they might be friends, but her marrying Ben couldn’t happen. Ever.

She checked her phone as she waited in a serpentine line, and found nothing recent on the “Ally’s new man” front. Perhaps Rose had been correct about the gossip site using Ben’s presence to invent a romance for social engagement. It didn’t explain onlookers claiming Ally’s instant attraction to Ben, though.

They were out in the cold, wherever that snapshot occurred. Perhaps a passing maid had mistaken snowflakes on the woman’s lashes for starry eyes.

_That’s stupid_. This whole trip was a dumb idea. How was she going to explain showing up unannounced, uninvited at Ben’s hotel? “Well, you kept texting us pictures, so I decided why should you have all the fun to yourself? By the way, can I sleep on the floor because I don’t have a ressie. Also, I love you. Please don’t marry Ally Maine.”

People walking past stared as she rehearsed her lines.

Eventually she found an English-speaking concierge who assisted in getting her transportation to Val Naboo. She was doing it, going big rather than going home.

Her phone dinged while she sat in the car. Great. Another incoming photo of Ben’s dream vacation. She opened the app and read Ben’s update. “She’s doing WHAT?”

“ _Mi scusi, signorina?_ ” asked the driver.

Dinner in her cottage. She had one of the luxury cottages on property. Of course she did. Ally Maine wasn’t about to slum in the main hotel while people stomped up and down the hallways in ski boots. She was hosting Ben’s whole family, then after they’d leave Ally would ask Ben to hang back for nightcap. They’d cuddle by the fireplace sipping brandy, and she’d give him a tour starting and ending in the bedroom. Satin sheets and furs for comforters. Breakfast the next morning wrapped in terry robes, feeding each other strawberries…

“ _Signorina, hai detto qualcosa?_ ”

What was he saying? Rey called up a translation site and typed with shaking fingers. “ _Vai veloce. Veloce!_ ” Drive faster. They were already zooming through traffic and weaving around cars. Rey braced for the ride, trying to steady her breathing.

At worst, she’d arrive to find her suspicions of a foreign affair were unfounded, and Ben would dine out for years on the story at her expense. At best, he’d think this the most romantic gesture ever given him, and sweep her into his arms and later his bed.

Either way, she felt foolish, but determined. Where was this pluck two years ago when she didn’t have to fly across Europe to reveal her feelings to a man?

***

White, everywhere she looked. Glorious and bright, covering the mountains and trees, covering the landscape like a comforting blanket.

Ally Maine opened the sliding door and stepped out onto the deck. She took the crisp, clean air deep into her lungs and held it for a few seconds, then exhaled slowly. The ensuing head rush helped boost her energy, though she’d enjoyed a natural high since arriving. It would be difficult to leave this serene paradise to begin a tour; fortunately for her, she loved her work.

Jack would have loved it here, too, she decided. She pictured him in one of the deck rockers, feet propped on the railing and scribbling lyrics in a notebook, inspired by the view. At once, her enthusiasm dimmed a bit. Everywhere she turned, something served her a reminder of his absence. Three years gone and she still missed him terribly.

A voice from inside, calling her name, drew her out of her daydream. She took another breath, conjured a smile, greeted her father Lorenzo with a kiss. “Where’s Ramon?” she asked, referring to her closest friend. The two men had left together for an early ski.

Lorenzo unzipped his jacket. “Left him on bunny slopes. He was holding me back.”

“You shouldn’t have done that. He’s not as adept on skis as you are.” Ally worried for Ramon.

Lorenzo hung up his jacket and lumbered toward his room to shed the rest of the suit. “Last I saw, one of the instructors had his back. Quite possibly other places later on,” he said. “What’s his name… Fabio, Fabrizio, something? They were getting kind of flirty.”

She had to laugh at that. “Nice to know somebody will come away from this trip with a romantic memory.”

“Yeah, what about you?” Lorenzo poked his head through the doorway. “You and that not-so-abominable redwood.”

Ally pondered that cryptic remark. “You mean Ben Solo? He’s just a new friend, really sweet guy here with his family for his grandmother’s birthday,” she said. A shy fan she’d enjoyed meeting, nothing romantic there. “By the way, I’m having a birthday dinner catered for his family tonight, so you have to behave.”

Lorenzo emerged in a tight t-shirt and slacks, smoothing back his hair. “Meeting the family already, huh?”

“It’s not like that.” Ally padded into the kitchen for coffee, needing a distraction.

“The world thinks differently.” Lorenzo nodded to her phone on the counter. “Check it out yourself.”

Ally tried to avoid social media whenever possible. Her manager, Rez, outsourced her official accounts to an agency who mainly posted promotional updates and answered fan tweets. She had a burner profile for a while, but tired of it. Her Twitter app was set to it when she called it up to find her name trending.

Typical when she dropped a new album, but people seemed more interested in the photo of her and Ben in the foreground of snowy Italy. “Oh, dear,” she murmured, scrolling through the reactions. Nothing negative, just a collective squee celebrating the possibility that Ally had finally found love again. Heart-eyed emojis and GIFs of that feline cop from _Zootopia_ dreamily resting his chin in his paws.

Was Ben aware of this? She had received his RSVP earlier, but decided to track him down beforehand to assuage any concerns about unwanted publicity. It had been nice to make his acquaintance, but it wasn’t her intention to drag him into her chaotic world.

“Ally,” her father came closer, “it’s been three years.”

“I know that,” she snapped. “I’m not thinking of that now. I have to figure out how to address this.” She flashed her phone screen at him.

“Why? Let it ride. Manifest the dream,” Lorenzo said. He pushed past her to raid the refrigerator. “Speaking of finding true love, this guy have a cute widowed mom?”

“Happily married. You need to behave.” Ally grabbed her purse. “I’m going out to do damage control. If Ramon comes back before I do, keep him here. We’re having a family meeting before this dinner.”

She closed the front door on her father hollering, “That’s my girl. Go get your man!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Mi scusi, signorina? - Excuse me, miss?  
> 2\. Signorina, hai detto qualcosa - Miss, you said something?

**Author's Note:**

> If you are enjoying this, while waiting for updates please check out these selected contemporary AU Reylo longfics by me - all rated E:
> 
> [Entwined](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28745784) (Winemaker Ben/Innkeeper Rey)  
> [Happy Little Trees](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29235762) (Artist Ben/Massage Therapist Rey)  
> [In Focus](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25890961) (Son of Pres. Candidate Ben/Photographer Rey)  
> [Time Has Come Today](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29609379) (Activist Ben/Museum Curator Rey - also time travel)
> 
> I'm also looking for a beta reader. Feel free to hit me up on Twitter at [@maude_zbornak](https://twitter.com/maude_zbornak).


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